An Earnest Heart
by mew-tsubaki
Summary: Drabble, pre-slash. Watari tries too hard, and Matsukawa points it out. [pre-WatariMatsukawa] Part of the Worrywarts series.


**An Earnest Heart**

A Haikyuu! drabble

by mew-tsubaki

Note: The _Haikyuu!_ characters belong to Furudate Haruichi-sensei, not to me. This ship is too cute for my heart… *This is a fic based on the "Current Concern" for these charries, taken from their character charts. All Worrywarts-themed stories are listed towards the bottom of my profile. Read, review, and enjoy!

\- ^-^3

If there was one thing to enjoy about Aoba Johsai, it was that the school was well-off. Normally Watari Shinji didn't care about such things, but there was a plus to attending this nice school. Namely, Seijou had a small workout room adjoining the gym.

He only had a few small weights at home, so the workout room was a godsend. Watari wasn't an incredibly small guy, and they had won against Karasuno and their amazing libero again in the Interhigh, but Watari wasn't satisfied. He really needed to build up some muscle. It was okay for Oikawa and Yahaba to be leaner—they were setters. But the others… Even Kunimi and Kindaichi had nicer muscles than him, and they were first years! Watari didn't even want to think about the third years, either…least of all Iwaizumi and Matsukawa. They were _huge_.

The libero sighed to himself and tried the door to the workout room during lunch. Amazingly, it was unlocked. Watari breathed a sigh of relief and opened the door, deciding to do a few reps. He wasn't going to use any of the heavier equipment—not alone—but the school had a rowing machine! He could make use of that by himself, at least.

Watari had just arranged himself and started moving when he heard the door creak. He paused and snapped his attention to the doorway…but there was no one there.

_Weird,_ he thought, and he went back to his activity.

\- ^-^3

Working out during lunch did seem to pay off. Slowly, very gradually, Watari felt stronger, and he moved better on the court.

Iwaizumi remarked about his speed and stamina, and Oikawa said he didn't have a single fret about their team with a libero like Watari on their side. Hanamaki teased him, saying this was Watari's last growth spurt and to enjoy it while it lasted.

The team would occasionally use the workout room, too, so Watari wasn't the only one improving. But it looked as though he was improving the most out of all of them. Watari didn't need to be stronger than them, though—he just wanted to be on the same level.

\- ^-^3

In the summer, the workout room could grow quite warm and stuffy. Watari tried not to overdo it then, and he took two water bottles with him.

But on one of those summer days, the door creaked again, like before. Watari paused and didn't worry about it. The door was just—

"Ah. Watari."

The libero jolted at the sound of Matsukawa's voice. "Matsukawa-san!"

The giant's eyes landed on him. "Sorry. Didn't mean to scare you."

"No, of course…" Watari didn't know what to do. This was a little awkward. Was he in trouble for being in here by himself without permission?

As if he'd been waved in, Matsukawa took a step inside. "You're by yourself?"

Watari's face grew warm with embarrassment, not summer heat. "Uh…yeah…"

"So this is why you're doing better at practice."

"W-Well…" Watari pouted. "I just wanted to build muscle. I can play better if I do so."

Matsukawa shrugged. "No, I get it."

The libero internally breathed a sigh of relief. Matsukawa wasn't like the other senpai. He was easygoing, like Hanamaki, but he had a soft, caring outside. He was easy to talk to—something like that. Vaguely Watari wondered if Matsukawa had any younger siblings.

"However," Matsukawa continued, walking over and leaning on the rowing machine. He looked down at Watari. "Don't come here alone again and don't push yourself."

"Uh, r-right!" Watari agreed.

Matsukawa smiled at him, looking as though something amused him. "Good. Besides, you'll look like muscles wrapped in cloth in our school uniform if you weigh as much as me." He lifted his school jacket open to highlight the ill-fitting ensemble.

Watari grinned, trying not to laugh. Matsukawa really was a calming presence. "All right," the libero promised.

The middle blocker nodded, happy. "Besides…" Yet whatever he wanted to say didn't leave his mouth.

Watari stared up at him and accidently locked eyes with the older boy. And he saw something unspoken flit in those gentle eyes:

_"You're fine the way you look now."_

The libero looked away quickly, just nodding his head that he understood his senpai. So Matsukawa stayed with him, and the former ended up becoming his workout partner.

And Watari stopped casting Matsukawa in a brotherly light.

\- ^-^3

**Cute. I just… **_**CUTE**_**. They're one of my early OTPs for the series, and I just can't get over them. At first I thought it was because of my love for Asanoya (and therefore large players with tiny liberoes), but Matsuwata is like seeing a big, old dog with a gentle personality make friends with a bouncing puppy—or a small squirrel or hamster. Sorry for the comparison, Watari! XD But yeah. There'll be more Matsuwata to come, as well as more Worrywarts stories.**

**Thanks for reading, and please review! And check out my other fics if you liked this!**

**-mew-tsubaki :3**


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